Sixth Sunday of Easter (click here for full text)

Jesus says in John's Gospel, “I will not leave you orphans.” (14:18). A few years ago, I met an orphan: Esther. She was now 90 years old, yet was orphaned as a child, and spent ten difficult years in an orphanage in central Pennsylvania. Now, decades later, Esther was able to transcend feelings of loneliness, and isolation. She began to experience the reality that as a Christian, she is never abandoned, never truly alone. Even in an isolated room of a nursing home with no family to visit, Esther was able to experience – personally and deeply – the reality that in Christ Jesus, none of us are orphans, none are abandoned.

It is not uncommon for Americans to experience loneliness and isolation. At times these feelings may come and go but often we move on. But sometimes feelings of isolation and loneliness simply do not pass. When mental illness, peer pressure, addiction, or other difficult dynamics are also present, some may feel they have no hope, and even may take drastic actions to relieve their pain.

Our wider community of Penfield, NY has witnessed the sad tragedy of multiple teen suicides over the past few years, and Penfield is not unique in America. Dealing with sudden loss and getting through difficult times had been a topic that many of our youth wanted to talk about during regular youth group meetings, and the topic of suicide prevention and grief from suicides often surfaces at youth group. The tragic loss of a young student at Penfield High School earlier this month to suicide reopened many wounds for teens, parents, teachers, and administrators in our community.

The day that news spread about the loss of a student at PHS, I was not sure how to respond. It seemed best to me and to youth minister Lisa Mannella to provide a space for people to talk, share, pray, and be together. We met in the youth room at St. Joseph's that evening, and a number of parents and teens came to be together. In the wake of a sudden and tragic loss, just being together, remaining with one another was the only fitting thing. The next week, we and many others from the parish staff of St. Joseph's joined many, many others in the community to be together lest feelings of grief make us orphaned or desolate, but instead to voice our concerns and questions publically, and to listen and learn from the experience of others.

It was in these gatherings, seemingly separated individuals coming together as one to be together in the midst of tragedy, that I felt profoundly grateful to be a member of the Church in this modern world. As Esther was able to realize, Christians are never truly alone, never abandoned, or orphaned. We may feel that way from time to time, but we always have each other. And the Church is more than a collection of individuals, but as Christians, each of us has the Holy Trinity dwelling within us, a reality promised by Jesus in this week’s Gospel, John 14:15-21. In the midst of our very lonely and isolated modern world, reflecting on the profound gift of the community of the Church leads us to invite others deeper into this community, which has at its heart the communion of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.